Model reveals to be intersex and heats up debate on the topic

Very little is said about the intersexual issue and, precisely for this reason, we end up believing that these cases are extremely rare – but they are not. For those who are not familiar with the word, intersexual is the person who is born with chromosomes and physical characteristics of both sexes (which was formerly called hermaphrodite).

According to the UN, it is estimated that 1.7% of the world’s population is intersex. This amount is equivalent to natural redheads, to give you an idea. There is no denying that this is a considerable number of people and that the subject can no longer be swept under the rug.

Being born with characteristics of both sexes is already a very complicated situation, and the dimension of the problem is even greater when we stop to think about another detail: the incidence of genital mutilation in childhood. That’s what happened to the Belgian model Hanne Gaby Odiele (and that happens to most intersex people): her gender was “chosen” by her parents and doctors, not by herself.

At the age of 28, Hanne is already a veteran in the fashion world and became known for working with brands such as Alexander Wang, Balenciaga, Chanel, Marc Jacobs and Versace. But only now has she decided to open up about her condition, as she has become a soldier for the rights of intersex people and also for breaking the taboo.

Hanne says she had her testicles removed at the age of 10 and, at 18, underwent an operation to reconstitute her vagina. “I’m proud to be intersex, but I’m angry that these surgeries still happen,” she told USA Today. Today, the model also suffers from symptoms of early menopause, due to intense hormones in the past.

Currently, Hanne is a spokesperson for the NGO InterACT, which fights for the right of intersex people to decide about their bodies. “We fight to end unnecessary surgery and harmful treatments done to intersex children.”

There are at least 30 types of diagnoses related to intersexuality. In Hanne’s case, she was born with male genitalia and XY chromosomes, but her body never produced male hormones in the amount considered normal. Until she was 2 months old, her parents thought she was a boy like any other, but a blood test (due to an infection) discovered the anomaly. From there, they decided that Hanne would be a woman.

She says that the worst of all was not knowing what was going on with her body as a teenager, because her parents chose not to tell her that she was intersex. “I knew at some point after the surgery that I couldn’t have children and I wouldn’t get my period. I knew something was wrong. If they had just been honest with me from the beginning… It became trauma because of what they did,” she vents.

She also draws attention to the fact that surgeries and hormonal treatments performed in childhood are not consensual. As a child, an intersex person still can’t get a sense of what’s going on with their body, even if their parents are open about the issue. The big problem is that these methods are irreversible and this can cause a lot of suffering. “Doctors think they need to ‘normalize’ the baby,” Hanne told Vogue.

In the view of the model (and the NGO InterACT), however much this may bring questioning and suffering to the intersexual child, the best thing to do is act honestly. According to them, hiding the facts does not bring any benefit, much less deciding on the gender identity of that person.

In addition to making parents and doctors aware, the intersexual community’s struggle is also to break down prejudices in society in general. It’s high time to face that almost 2% of the world’s population is born without defined gender and that these people have the right to live fully.